An Egyptian police officer, Mostafa Mohsen, died on Monday after an exchange of gunfire in south Cairo while arresting an alleged "terrorist cell" with supposed links to the Muslim Brotherhood, according to the interior ministry's official Facebook page.

Officers from the national security apparatus had been tracking the cell to make the arrest, setting up checkpoints in the area to apprehend members, said the interior ministry.

Almost 500 policemen and soldiers have been killed in the militant attacks that have included bombings and shootings.

The militants say their attacks are in revenge for a crackdown waged by authorities against Morsi's Islamist supporters that has killed hundreds and jailed thousands more since the ouster of the Islamist president.